Diabetes mellitus is a systemic disease characterized by disorders in the metabolism of insulin, carbohydrates, fats and proteins, and in the structure and function of blood vessels. The primary symptom of acute diabetes is hyperglycemia, often accompanied by glucosuria, the presence in urine of large amounts of glucose, and polyuria, the excretion of large volumes of urine. Additional symptoms arise in chronic or long standing diabetes. These symptoms include degeneration of the walls of blood vessels. Although many different organs are affected by these vascular changes, the eyes appear to be the most susceptible. As such, longstanding diabetes mellitus, even when treated with insulin, is a leading cause of blindness.
There are two recognized types of diabetes. Juvenile onset, or ketosis-prone, diabetes (also known as Type I diabetes) develops early in life, with clinical onset most often occurring before the patient is 18 years of age. Type I diabetes has much more severe symptoms and has a near-certain prospect of later vascular involvement. Control of this type of diabetes is often difficult. The second type of diabetes is adult onset, or ketosis-resistant, diabetes (also known as Type II diabetes). Type II diabetes develops later in life, is milder and has a more gradual onset.
One of the most significant advancements in the history of medical science came in 1922 when Banting and Best demonstrated the therapeutic effects of insulin in diabetic humans. However, even today, a clear picture of the basic biochemical defects of the disease is not known, and diabetes is still a serious health problem. It is believed that two percent or more of the population of the United States is afflicted with some form of diabetes, with 0.1-0.5% afflicted with Type I diabetes.
Type I diabetes is an autoimmune disease which is characterized by a long latent period. Furthermore, the younger the patient is when striken with Type I diabetes, especially if the patient is pre-puberty, the more debilitating the complications resulting from the disease. Accordingly, there is a need for a safe drug which will prevent development of Type I diabetes, or at least prolong onset of the disease for as long a period of time as possible.
It is an object of this invention to provide a method of treating Type I diabetes. More specifically, the invention provides a method of treating Type I diabetes in a mammal, especially a human, which method comprises administering a compound selected from among certain aryl-substituted rhodanine derivatives of the general formula ##STR1##
The present method provides for safe and efficacious treatment of Type I diabetes by either preventing development of the disease altogether or by prolonging onset of the disease for as long a period of time as possible, thereby minimizing the disease's concomitant complications.
The method of the present invention employs certain aryl-substituted rhodanine derivatives of the general formula set forth above. Such compounds are known in the art, see for example European Patent Applications 211,670 and 391,644, and are known to be useful for treating inflammation, arthritis and muscular dystrophy and for preventing ischemia-induced. cell damage.
The aryl-substituted rhodanines employed in the method of the present invention have not heretofore been used to treat Type I diabetes in mammals. The known activities of such compounds, as set forth above, in no way suggest the method of the present invention. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a new pharmacological use for certain known rhodanine derivatives.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent description and the appended claims.